1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to solar heating and, more particularly, to a method and apparatus for heating spas with a portable solar energy heating system having a solar collector array formed of sets of tubes and webbing, an inlet and outlet manifold coupled to the ends of the tubes, and hoses coupled to the manifolds for conducting water between the spa and the solar collector array.
2. Description of the Background Art
Diminishing supplies of conventional fuels along with their increasing costs have resulted in greater attention being paid to the conservation of energy. Consequently, nonconventional energy sources such as solar energy have become the subject of investigation and use. One field which has been found to be readily adaptable to the benefits of solar energy is the heating of spas. Spas are small pools of bathing water used for therapeutic purposes or simply for relaxation. Spas are frequently provided with jets of water or flows of air bubbles and have their water heated to temperatures of about 95.degree.-100.degree. F. degrees Fahrenheit for enhancing the value and enjoyment of their use. In addition to the problem of fuel costs and availability, many localities have enacted ordinances which prohibit the use of conventional fuels for heating spas, swimming pools and the like. Solar heating has thus not only become increasingly popular but now constitutes the only practical solution to the problem of heating spas in many areas.
Due to the present limitations on the use of conventional fuels for heating spas, there has been a flurry of technical activity attempting to develop a solar energy heating system for home use by the average spa owner which is efficient, reliable, convenient and economical. As a result, a wide variety of types of solar energy heating device have, in fact, been developed and are in commercial use. All of the presently known and utilized solar energy heating devices, however, have significant drawbacks in one aspect or another. Some are inefficient, incapable of raising the water temperature to a satisfactory temperature in a reasonable time. Others are difficult to install and store. Yet others are expensive to manufacture and maintain or have unacceptable life spans.
Attempts are continuing in an effort to correct the problems inherent in known solar energy heating devices. All such attempts have proven unsuccessful in one aspect or another. As a result, custom designed systems have become increasingly popular. Such custom designed systems, however, are extremely costly and beyond the financial resources of most spa owners.
The patent literature discloses many types of devices as well as a wide variety of techniques which utilize solar energy for heating purposes such as for the heating of water for spas and the like. Note, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,381,764 to Wojcik. According to the Wojcik disclosure, a solar panel is employed for use in the heating of spas, swimming pools and the like. The disclosed device includes a plurality of elongated, flexible conduits secured together in a side by side relationship at spaced points. The conduits are interconnected at their extremities to manifolds. The panel may be stored and shipped in some type of a rolled-up, preassembled configuration and may be installed by unrolling the panel onto a suitable supporting surface. The conduits are unconnected to each other along the majority of their lengths thus making the proper installation of the device, as well as its storage, difficult.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,269,172 to Parker et al discloses a solar water heating device which includes a collector formed of plastic ducting with intake and return manifolds. The Parker et al device is primarily designed as a non-portable structure, permanently installed upon specially constructed roofs. It is, thus, neither portable nor suitable for use with limited support surface.
The patent to Zinn et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,270,596, shows a flexible heater formed as a mat of tubes. The device is particularly adapted for use in embedded radiant heating systems. It includes a plurality of webbed tube mats and associated manifolds. Tubes are separated from their adjacent tubes along tear lines located along two longitudinally spaced portions of the mat. The device is designed for being supported upon a specially constructed supporting surface. The use of the Zinn et al device in association with its specially constructed supporting structure renders it economically impractical for use with spas.
The Zinn patent, U.S. Pat. No. 4,353,352, discloses a solar water heater assembly with inlet and outlet manifolds. The outlet manifold also serves as a storage tank. The manifolds are connected by a solar heat absorber which includes flexible rubber tube strips, each formed of multiple tubes connected by separable ribs. The strips may be rolled up about the storage tank or inlet manifold. The size, complexity and cost render it impactical for use in heating spas.
Other types of solar heating devices in the patent literature include units positionable upon the water, under the water, and around the water. Note, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,256,087 to Sowers; 4,402,305 to Kremen and 4,312,323 to Domenech. Additionally, a large body of disclosed devices for solar heating are particularly adapted for positioning upon the roofs of buildings. Note, by way of example, the Gerber U.S. Pat. No. 3,991,742, the Masters U.S. Pat. No. 3,513,828, the Konopka et al U.S. Pat. No. 3,868,945 as well as two U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,360,005 and 4,483,312 to Sharpe. Lastly, some of the background art to solar energy devices specifically relate to component coupling and manifold configurations. Note, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,321,911 to Offutt and 4,290,413 to Goodman et al.
All of these patents disclose structures for employing solar energy for heating purposes and include, to a limited degree, certain features having some element of use or structural similarlity to the method and apparatus of the instant invention. Neither these patents nor the known commercial devices teach or suggest the efficient, reliable, convenient, and economical method and apparatus as described and claimed herein. Known apparatus and methods employing solar energy for heating spas and the like are simply lacking in one regard or another.
As illustrated by the great number of prior patents and commercial devices, efforts are continuously being made in an attempt to heat spas by solar energy more efficiently, conveniently, reliably and economically. None of these previous efforts, however, suggests the present invention combination of method steps and component elements arranged and configured as disclosed and claimed herein. Prior techniques and apparatus do not provide the benefits attendant with the present invention. The present invention achieves its intended purposes, objectives and advantages over the prior art devices through a new, useful and unobvious combination of methods steps and component elements, with the use of a minimum number of functioning parts, at a reduction is costs to manufacture and utilize, and by employing only readily available materials.
These objects and advantages should be constructed as merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications of the present invention. Many other beneficial results may be attained by applying the disclosed invention in a different manner or by modifying the invention within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other objects and advantages as well as a fuller understanding of the invention may be had by referring to the summary and detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention in addition to the scope of the invention as defined by the claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.